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Can the NFL really hold a Super Bowl outdoors in the U.S. Northeast in February? Halftime show and all?

"Yes. Yes you can," Don Metz, founder and president of the Canadian-based Aquila Productions, said in an interview.

Super Bowl XLVIII is set for next Feb. 2 at the uncovered MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. — just across the Hudson River from Manhattan.

After a winter laced with brutal snowstorms and bitter cold streaks in the U.S. Northeast, skeptics everywhere wonder if the NFL has made a big mistake in staging its marquee event there — outdoors, at the mercy of Mother Nature.

Last month, the New York Post quoted an unnamed source involved in planning for Super Bowl XLVIII who said there were no plans to even hold an outdoor halftime show at the stadium.

"It's not only the acts and the singers, but (also) the crews that have to put the stage together," the source told the Post. "You know, the assembly has to be done a certain way. It's choreographed and rehearsed so it can be assembled and disassembled as fast as possible. And you just can't assemble the stage and break it down fast enough in the cold."

The NFL immediately refuted the report.

"We've planned for it, we've mapped it out and there will be a pregame and a halftime show," NFL spokesman Brian McCarthy told the New York Daily News.

Is a Super Bowl staged in the extreme cold impractical? Not in the least, Metz said.

And how would he know?

"Because I've produced many, many outdoor games and outdoor shows over the past 20 years — some in extremely cold weather.

"It would really piss me off if they cancelled that halftime show for not being prepared, or for not understanding the elements."

A blizzard would be one thing. Extreme cold is another. And pulling off a pageantry-filled outdoor major sporting event in the latter — complete with star musicians and hundreds of performers — is not only possible, it's one of the specialties of Metz's powerhouse Canadian event and video company.

Sometimes Metz and his crew produce an entire event, other times just the TV portion of it.

"There are a lot of little tricks that sometimes people who don't live in cold-weather countries don't know," said Metz, whose company is based in Edmonton.

Case in point, two notoriously frigid outdoor NHL games: the November 2003 Heritage Classic at Edmonton's Commonwealth Stadium, which pit the host Oilers against the Montreal Canadiens, and the February 2011 Heritage Classic at Calgary's McMahon Stadium between the host Flames and the Habs.

A nasty cold front crunched Edmonton on the day of that 2003 game.

"When I woke up, my truck's temperature gauge said 25-below," Metz said. It "warmed" to -18 C, but a nasty wind made it feel like -30 C.

"We all know how to dress for the cold up here," Metz said. "We were all outside from 6 that morning till 9 that night. And you know, we were fine. And the event went fine."

Canadian rocker Tom Cochrane (of Life is a Highway fame) headlined the entertainment between the brief oldtimers game and the evening NHL game. There were bagpipers, Olympic-ceremonies-style performances, even a fireworks display afterward. Official attendance was 57,167, many of whom sat on metal bleachers.

Eight years later, the Calgary outdoor NHL game was almost as cold. An arctic front had descended on the southern Alberta city the week before.

"It felt like 10 days in a row of 30 below," Metz said. "It turned out to be quite the challenge leading up, because we could never get more than 10 or 15 minutes of rehearsal in, because the kids who are 12, 13, 14, 15 years old nowadays dress to be 'cool,' not smart.

"Ya know, they've got on little tiny jackets, no tuque, skinny little jeans only. Man, you'll die out there in a few minutes wearing that. These elements are dangerous. You have to be very careful. You have to have a lot of EMS on site — for frostbite. You have to really go the extra yard. We did."

The temperature warmed to -9 C by game day, but winds made it feel like -21 C.

McMahon Stadium was packed with 41,022 fans. Outside that football-first venue, a fan zone pumped up the party atmosphere, with rock bands playing. Inside, several music acts performed during breaks in play throughout the game.

And at this one, the oldtimers game beforehand went for a full three periods. Yet most fans stayed for both — almost six hours.

As for logistics — from setup and takedowns, to electronic equipment, to electric power, to entertainment performances — all went fine in Calgary, too.

Metz's company also has run the halftime shows of five Grey Cup games — which, in some of the CFL's northern-most cities, can be equivalent weather-wise to the American Northeast in January or February.

"It's all about using common sense, about being prepared," Metz said. "A Super Bowl halftime show involves hundreds of people. So you have to put extra things into your production schedules. There are many, many things that can be put into place to make sure that the halftime show resonates great on TV."

Metz isn't shy about suggesting a theme for Super Bowl XLVIII.

"I sure hope they don't pretend they're doing a warm-weather halftime show. I don't think the people of New Jersey are like that. I think they're smart enough to know that the producers of the show need to work in the fact that this is an outdoor show.

"Design the show so that it is kind of a winter wonderland. It'll be spectacular. Have people wearing colourful ski coats, and big knits and scarves and stuff. Celebrate and embrace the outdoor elements, otherwise it won't be a success."

Some of the other "little tricks" Metz has learned, which might or might not be revelations to Super Bowl planners:

* "Have plenty of hand warmers and seat warmers on hand, and make sure your crews and performers have what's called winter-green lotion on their skin, which slows down the freezing process."

* "When it comes to equipment — normally solid-state electronic equipment but now, especially, digital equipment — it gets more affected by high heat than low cold. Thirty above is more problematic than 30-below."

* More tech talk: "Anything battery-powered will drain far quicker in extreme cold. So you need to have extra batteries. And your cables will get stiff, so it's important that all your cable-runs are properly covered with cable covers and such, so people don't snap the cables when they walk on them — which did happen more than a couple times at those outdoor games, because the cable gets so brittle."

* Drill it into fans through the media about the dangers of frostbite. And also about staying hydrated. "It's not so much about hot chocolate as making sure you're well hydrated with just pure water," Metz said. "Because, really, it's just the people who aren't hydrated who get in danger — and those cool kids who dress dumb."

* "When you have a music group, you make sure they sing their asses off on stage — so you see their breath."

* "I learned a trick from a couple of rock bands that I've worked with. It's that they tune their guitars outside in the cold, and leave them outside. They'll go out of tune otherwise in the temperature switch. And have them play with finger-less gloves. Looks cool."

* "If you're using gas or propane to help with power generation, you need to have specialists on hand. Extreme cold can cause issues."

* "Condensation and frosting up of the lenses can happen outside, and there are ways to avoid that. We had battery-operated hair dryers, and battery-operated de-foggers. We put certain kinds of coating on our lenses to help, too."

* "This is a fun one. You know the TV cameramen who go into the dressing room afterward? The moment they take those cameras from outside to inside? They'll have no lenses. They're going to be completely fogged — all the glass elements. They won't be able to defog them in time to get their news clips. So what we do is we have spare lenses in heated bags. They're already acclimated to the indoor temperature. I watch all these other guys who aren't used to this, trying to wipe down the lens while it's just sweating inside. It'll never clear in time."

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Bottom line, Metz said there's no reason he can see that even an extreme cold snap should imperil the Super Bowl next year.

"There are checklists as to how to deal with extreme winter weather at outdoor sporting events. And you just build your lists. How do the fans take care of themselves? How do the halftime-show people take care of themselves? How do the broadcasters take care of themselves? Figure out your precautions, and then just deal with them."

Canadian producer says cold Super Bowl no problem

Can the NFL really hold a Super Bowl outdoors in the U.S. Northeast in February? Halftime show and all?

"Yes. Yes you can," Don Metz, founder and president of the Canadian-based Aquila Productions, said in an interview.

Super Bowl XLVIII is set for next Feb. 2 at the uncovered MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, N.J. — just across the Hudson River from Manhattan.

After a winter laced with brutal snowstorms and bitter cold streaks in the U.S. Northeast, skeptics everywhere wonder if the NFL has made a big mistake in staging its marquee event there — outdoors, at the mercy of Mother Nature.

Last month, the New York Post quoted an unnamed source involved in planning for Super Bowl XLVIII who said there were no plans to even hold an outdoor halftime show at the stadium.

"It's not only the acts and the singers, but (also) the crews that have to put the stage together," the source told the Post. "You know, the assembly has to be done a certain way.